Willem de Clercq
Encyclopedia
Willem de Clercq was secretary (1824- , at its foundation) and later director (1831- ) of the Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappij
(NHM). He is also known as a poet and as a leader of the Réveil, the Protestant Revival in the Netherlands. He left behind a gigantic diary, with extensive reports of the events he witnessed. Parts of that have been published.
In 1816 he traveled by carriage to Saint Petersburg
and reported on the landscape and the social and cultural life in the north German and Baltic ports, a few years after Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated and distant travel once again became possible. After the sudden death of his father Gerrit de Clercq, he came to lead the family business in 1817. De Clercq married Caroline Boissevain (1799-1879) in 1817, and they had several children, including Gerrit de Clercq, later known as an editor of De Gids. During the grain crisis around 1820 the family firm got into a deep crisis, from which she never fully recovered her former peak position.
Around that time, De Clercq came into contact with the till the Jewish convert Isaäc da Costa
and a profound friendship grew up between them, with De Clercq converting to orthodox Calvinism under Da Costa's influence. Together with Willem Bilderdijk
, Abraham Capadose
, Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer
, Samuel Iperusz Wiselius and others, they became the leaders of the Réveil.
When in 1824 the NHM was set up De Clercq left the failing family business to become secretary of the NHM. For that reason he established himself in the Hague. There he began attending the Reformed-Walloon
churches. When the NHM in 1831 transferred to Amsterdam, he officially went over from Mennonitism to the Walloon Reformed Municipality, choosing out of conviction infant baptism
over adult baptism.
As a manager of the NHM, he had much influence on the arising textile industry in Twente
. He was influenced by Thomas Ainsworth
, involved in the setting up of the industry in the town of Nijverdal
. He wanted to act out his beliefs in his work, for instance wanting to employ small-scale industry rather than large factories, because he found that factories were harmful for the clergyman state of the workers. Furthermore he was a supporter of the NHM dividing her orders proportionally over as many producers as possible so as to get the work done for the lowest price.
In his last years De Clercq placed his views further from those of Da Costa and came more and more under the influence of Hermann Friedrich Kohlbrugge
. As a result he withdrew more and more from social and cultural life, opting for denying the world as opposed to Da Costa's active involvement in city life. De Clercq died suddenly, after months in which he made more depressed impression in town. Some historians blame Kohlbrugge's dominating views for De Clercq's death, whilst others lay the blame on De Clercq's own idealistic and emotional character.
As a poet De Clercq was especially well known for improvisation, able to speak a poem, without preparation, at only a minute's notice. In Amsterdam a street is named after him, as also in different Twentse places.
Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappij
The Netherlands Trading Society was a Dutch trading company established in 1824 by King Willem I of the Netherlands to promote and develop trade, shipping and agriculture...
(NHM). He is also known as a poet and as a leader of the Réveil, the Protestant Revival in the Netherlands. He left behind a gigantic diary, with extensive reports of the events he witnessed. Parts of that have been published.
Life
Willem de Clercq came from a well-to-do Amsterdam Mennonite family of grain merchants. Already in 1801, he began to make notes, resulting in a diary he kept from 1811 till his death, 36,000 pages later. Initially intending to be trained as a preacher, he learnt German, French and Greek, but had to travel in order to avoid Napoleonic conscription. At the end of 1813 a panic arose in Delft of an invasion by Napoleon. Willem de Clercq describes the events in its diary, initially in French, later on in Dutch.In 1816 he traveled by carriage to Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and reported on the landscape and the social and cultural life in the north German and Baltic ports, a few years after Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated and distant travel once again became possible. After the sudden death of his father Gerrit de Clercq, he came to lead the family business in 1817. De Clercq married Caroline Boissevain (1799-1879) in 1817, and they had several children, including Gerrit de Clercq, later known as an editor of De Gids. During the grain crisis around 1820 the family firm got into a deep crisis, from which she never fully recovered her former peak position.
Around that time, De Clercq came into contact with the till the Jewish convert Isaäc da Costa
Isaac da Costa
Isaac da Costa was a Dutch poet.Da Costa was born in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. His father, an aristocratic Sephardic Portuguese Jewish, Daniel da Costa, a relative of Uriel Acosta, was a prominent merchant in the city of Amsterdam; his mother, Rebecca Ricardo, was a near relative of the...
and a profound friendship grew up between them, with De Clercq converting to orthodox Calvinism under Da Costa's influence. Together with Willem Bilderdijk
Willem Bilderdijk
Willem Bilderdijk , Dutch poet, the son of an Amsterdam physician. When he was six years old an accident to his foot incapacitated him for ten years, and he developed habits of continuous and concentrated study...
, Abraham Capadose
Abraham Capadose
The Revd Dr Abraham Capadose or Capadoce was a Dutch physician and Calvinist writer...
, Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer
Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer
Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer , Dutch politician and historian, was born at Voorburg, near the Hague.-Overview:...
, Samuel Iperusz Wiselius and others, they became the leaders of the Réveil.
When in 1824 the NHM was set up De Clercq left the failing family business to become secretary of the NHM. For that reason he established himself in the Hague. There he began attending the Reformed-Walloon
Walloons
Walloons are a French-speaking people who live in Belgium, principally in Wallonia. Walloons are a distinctive community within Belgium, important historical and anthropological criteria bind Walloons to the French people. More generally, the term also refers to the inhabitants of the Walloon...
churches. When the NHM in 1831 transferred to Amsterdam, he officially went over from Mennonitism to the Walloon Reformed Municipality, choosing out of conviction infant baptism
Infant baptism
Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. In theological discussions, the practice is sometimes referred to as paedobaptism or pedobaptism from the Greek pais meaning "child." The practice is sometimes contrasted with what is called "believer's baptism", or...
over adult baptism.
As a manager of the NHM, he had much influence on the arising textile industry in Twente
Twente
Twente is a non-administrative region in the eastern Netherlands. It encompasses the most urbanised and easternmost part of the province of Overijssel...
. He was influenced by Thomas Ainsworth
Thomas Ainsworth
Thomas Ainsworth was an Englishman and the founding father of Nijverdal, a small town in the Netherlands, during the 19th century. He laid the basis for the Royal Steam Weaving Mill in Nijverdal in 1836 that is still operating today under the name TenCate.- Biography :Son of Betty and prominent...
, involved in the setting up of the industry in the town of Nijverdal
Nijverdal
Nijverdal is a town of approximately 25.000 inhabitants in the Dutch province of Overijssel. It is the commercial centre of the municipality Hellendoorn....
. He wanted to act out his beliefs in his work, for instance wanting to employ small-scale industry rather than large factories, because he found that factories were harmful for the clergyman state of the workers. Furthermore he was a supporter of the NHM dividing her orders proportionally over as many producers as possible so as to get the work done for the lowest price.
In his last years De Clercq placed his views further from those of Da Costa and came more and more under the influence of Hermann Friedrich Kohlbrugge
Hermann Friedrich Kohlbrugge
Hermann Friedrich Kohlbrugge, or Kohlbrügge was a Dutch minister.- External links :* http://www.meetingpoint.org/Kohlbrugge/hfkfried.htm...
. As a result he withdrew more and more from social and cultural life, opting for denying the world as opposed to Da Costa's active involvement in city life. De Clercq died suddenly, after months in which he made more depressed impression in town. Some historians blame Kohlbrugge's dominating views for De Clercq's death, whilst others lay the blame on De Clercq's own idealistic and emotional character.
As a poet De Clercq was especially well known for improvisation, able to speak a poem, without preparation, at only a minute's notice. In Amsterdam a street is named after him, as also in different Twentse places.
Works
- Verzameling De Clercq (onder andere Particuliere aantekeningen/Dagboek) in: Réveil-Archief, Universiteitsbibliotheek, Universiteit van Amsterdam
- Woelige weken. November-December 1813 - Amsterdam 1988 (uitgegeven dagboekaantekeningen)
- Graan en reizen. Willem de Clercq in 1814 - Amsterdam 1995 (uitgegeven dagboekaantekeningen)
- Per karos naar Sint-Petersburg - Lochem 1962 (uitgegeven dagboekaantekeningen)
- Opvoeding. Verschillende byzonderheden over de opvoeding van Gerrit, Daan, Steven en Gideon - 1831
- Rapport eener reize naar de Fabrieken van Overijssel - 1832
- Briefwisseling tusschen Willem de Clercq en Isaäc da Costa. Bloemlezing uit onuitgegeven brieven berustende in het Réveil-archief te Amsterdam - Baarn 1938
- Willem de Clercq naar zijn dagboek - Amsterdam 1888